Sunday and Monday's Missed Posts

Sunday: In the city. Saw two shows at the Chopin - one last night, one today. Met with Lela, who is the co-owner of the theatre with her husband, Zygmunt. They are wonderful. I will be interning with them next semester. Actually, I'll be starting this semester sporadically and then going full force next semester. The building is beatiful. The owners live upstairs. The first floor has a large stage in which I have seen a musical, a performance art piece and a Shakespeare show. Downstairs in the small black box space I have seen two plays - one of which was very naturalistic (meaning they created an atmosphere that more acurately represented the real world). It was Desire Under the Elms. The company had covered the floor of the space, all the way into the audience, with mulch. It engaged the senses of smell and taste in the performance as well as sight, hearing and touch. It was a beautiful production and one of the reasons I like the Chopin so much. It is so versatile and caters to the needs of the production. The lobbies of the theater is decorated with hundreds of paintings, antique couches, flowers, mirrors and at least 6 bathrooms. Downstairs is a vibrant meeting room in which Sunday mornings see weekly engagements for companies and organizations. There are two bars and it is one of the only smaller, independently owned theaters to have a liquor liscense. I am so excited about working there I told Lela I would do anything from run productions to bartend to copy invoices to clean. I CAN'T WAIT!

Monday: First rehearsal in the theater space for Rent. It's the Prairie Lakes Theatre in Des Plaines. What a beautiful space!! We are so lucky to be out of the conference room at the Winnetka Community House and in the performance space TWO WEEKS before the show opens. That's like unheard of! In any event the theater has a huge house, WITH a balcony. It has two dressing rooms, a shower and a green room. It is totally equity rules approved. They mean business here. I can't wait to open a week from Friday. I hope everyoen can come!!!